Motown great Smokey Robinson hastens release of duets album

The release date for “Smokey & Friends,” the new duets album from legendary Motown icon and Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter Smokey Robinson has been moved up to Aug. 19 on Verve Records.

The album will be made available at all physical and digital retail outlets nationwide and is available for pre-order on Amazon.com.

The track listing for “Smokey & Friends” features Robinson with a roster of contemporary and classic artists revisiting the best-loved songs from Robinson’s solo catalog, his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group, The Miracles, and hits he wrote for other artists, including Marvin Gaye and The Temptations.

On the record, produced by Randy Jackson, Robinson is joined by old friends including James Taylor, Elton John, Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, Sheryl Crow, Mary J. Blige, John Legend, John Mayer, Miguel, Aloe Blacc, JC Chasez, CeeLo, Ledisi and Jessie J.

Robinson and his guests pay homage to the timeless originals, while creating new versions that feel both contemporary and classic. Robinson and John turn “The Tracks of My Tears” into an organ-drenched call and response. Legend’s graceful piano playing adds a new elegance to “Quiet Storm.” On “My Girl,” Miguel, Aloe Blacc, and ’N Sync’s JC Chasez match The Temptation’s smooth harmonies, as John Mayer re-creates the song’s instantly recognizable opening guitar riffs.

The album will delight longtime Robinson fans, and introduce these ageless songs to younger listeners unfamiliar with them.

“Smokey & Friends” includes:

1. “The Tracks Of My Tears,” featuring Elton John

2. “You Really Got A Hold On Me,” featuring Steven Tyler

3. “My Girl,” featuring Miguel, Aloe Blacc & JC Chasez

4. “Cruisin’,” featuring Jesse J

5. “Quiet Storm,” featuring John Legend

6. “The Way You Do (The Things You Do),” featuring CeeLo Green

7. “Being With You,” featuring Mary J. Blige

8. “Ain’t That Peculiar,” featuring James Taylor

9. “The Tears Of A Clown,” featuring Sheryl Crow

10. “Ooh Baby Baby,” featuring Ledisi

11. “Get Ready,” featuring Gary Barlow

Bob Dylan once called Robinson America’s “greatest living poet.” In the singer-songwriter’s four-decade career, he has received two Grammys, the Grammy Living Legend Award, NARAS Lifetime Achievement Award, Honorary Doctorate from Howard University, Kennedy Center Honors and the National Medal of Arts Award from the president of the United States. He has also been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame.

Born and raised in Detroit, Robinson founded The Miracles while still in high school. The group was Berry Gordy’s first vocal group, and Robinson’s “Shop Around” became Motown’s first No. 1 hit on the R&B singles chart. The Miracles dominated the R&B scene throughout the 1960s and early ’70s.